Bluegrass Odyssey:
A Documentary in Pictures and Words, 1966-86
by Carl Feischhauer and
Neil B. Rosenberg
University of Illinois Press
ISBN 0-252-02615-2 (2001); $34.95
The subtitle of this book is "A Documentary in Pictures and Words, 1966-1986." During those years, photographer Fleischhauer and writer Rosenberg began as young men to become involved in the bluegrass community. Both the pictures and the words have somewhat of a home-movie quality, from a shot of Clarence White behind the scenes at at 70s festival in his jewel-studded suit, walking with future bluegrass great (then teenager) David Grier, to several photos of Bill Monroe helping to push a car stuck in the mud. Though neither photos nor text offer strong insights, the co-authors succeed in sharing their joy and enthusiasm for the bluegrass community. - Kerry Dexter (Tallahassee, FL)
Carolan, The Life and Times and Music of
an Irish Harper
by Donal O'Sullivan
Ossian ISBN 1-900428-71-7 (2001);
378 pp.
Early editions of this definitive study of Carolan have commanded outrageous prices for years, due less to collectors' mania than to the extreme desirability of the books (originally there were two volumes) for reference. Over the years, the 213 tunes assembled by O'Sullivan have been reprinted, sometimes, shamefully, without reference to their source. Now Ossian has given the work the honor it desires, reuniting the music with O'Sullivan's biography of the harper and notes about the tunes he accepted as authentic. Since a high number of tunes credited to Carolan were not included (among which are several that are found in O'Neill's), these notes have particular value. Also included in the new edition is a fine 32-page appendix by Bonnie Shaljean, which updates O'Sullivan's scholarship regarding several tunes. Also in the appendix are — brace yourself, Brigitte! — over a dozen more tunes considered more or less likely to be Carolan compositions, with the history of each. Most of these come from a manuscript prepared around 1816 by the MacLean-Clephane sisters from the Scottish island of Mull. Certainly "Captain O'Neill" will get the attention of many a traditional player, and several other tunes have a melodic power suggestive of Carolan's work.
In one stroke, Ossian has relegated the earlier editions to the status of merely collectible, as opposed to useful, books. Carolan has long been considered a model of scholarship, entertainingly written without giving ground to the endless fantasies that have been spun about the bard and his work. The "last word" on Carolan has not only been restored to its original form, but a few more edifying words have been added. Reviewers sometimes exaggerate in calling the books they are writing about indispensable. This one really is. - Duck Baker (Richmond, CA)
Folk & Blues:
The Encyclopedia (revised and updated third edition)
by Irwin Stambler and
Lyndon Stambler
St. Martin's Press ISBN 0-312-20057-9 (2001); $49.95
This book is noted on the jacket as the premiere encyclopedia of American roots music and hailed as the most up-to-date and entertaining encyclopedia of American roots music ever published. Take both those claims with several grains of salt. The Stamblers have interviewed many leaders of the folk roots genre, and when they draw on interview material, their work is strongest, as might be expected.
What's worth watching out for, though, are articles drawn from both secondary and primary sources. The facts are not always reliable. In more than 600 pages of entries, some errors might be expected. However, a check of 10 articles about artists whom this reviewer has worked with and interviewed reveals some errors in each one. That gives pause for thought. The selection of artists is a bit odd, too — for example, there's an extensive article about Linda Ronstadt, certainly a good choice — but Emmylou Harris merits no entry at all. Also, this is billed as a revised and updated third edition, with a publication date of 2001. Granted, that may mean a closing date of some 12 to 18 months earlier, but most of the entries, if they have any information about an artist's activities after 1996 at all, include only a cursory sentence or two. Appendices listing award winners in the various roots genres are a helpful feature. There is some useful information here, but also very serious drawbacks. Don't make this your only reference source or your introduction to the scope of roots music. And it really is not an up-to-date reference despite the new edition. - Kerry Dexter (Tallahassee, FL)
The Unbroken Circle: Tradition and Innovation in the Music of Ry Cooder and Taj Mahal
by Fred Metting
Scarecrow Press, Inc. ISBN 0-8108-3818-4 (2001); 304 pp.; $60.00
University English professor Fred Metting uses the music and careers of Ry Cooder and Taj Mahal to explore the history of roots/folk music, and of academic scholarship about it, in the United States. It's an interesting premise, and Metting offers a lot of information and makes some thought-provoking points. He is an academic, though, and he does fall into the didactic pattern of telling you what he's going to tell you, telling it, and then summarizing and repeating what's he's told you in several different ways. This style can make for tedious reading after a while, although Metting is otherwise a good writer with an easy to read style — but because of the constant repetition, and because a good portion of this is sociological research, it's not exactly flowing reading material. Also, everything appears to be from secondary sources. There doesn't seem to be original interview material — of anyone — in the book. Clearly that wasn't Metting's purpose, and the source material he uses is well researched and thoroughly footnoted. - Kerry Dexter (Tallahassee, FL)
